A few grilled cheese questions.
A few grilled cheese questions.
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Why is fat spread on the bread different than fat poured in the pan? The sandwich comes out different depending your method here. 1A. Which method do you prefer?
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What fat do you use? Butter? Mayonnaise? Some super cool other thing that I haven't tried? Again the sandwich comes out different, both in flavor and texture depending on the fat of choice.
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Best cheese and bread for the sandwich?
I like to add some ᵇ̸̨̩̜̱̦̺͓̞̯̲̈́̓ˡ̴̦̘͉͚̱̬̖̩̝͈̀͝ᵒ̵̧̜͍̼̊̿̏̎̒̇̕͝ᵒ̸̧̠̼̞̓̑̾͆̊ᵈ̵̧̀̎̃̋̿ ̸̡̼͐̈́̓̓̀ᵒ̴̼̰͔͇̫͉̠̩̀̈́̋͒̚͝ᶠ̶̮̼͉̤͎͚̘̬̑͜ ̶̪͇̒̒̈́́̉͌͒̒̌͊ᵗ̴̘̝̳̽̄̉͐͛ʰ̴̙̗͍͉̱̦̜̗̦̆̀͐̍̎̑̚͜ᵉ̵͚̦̖͔̱̤̍̈̀ ̵̧̨̧͎̜͊̀̓͛̔͜͠ⁱ̶͎̱̟͍͓͇̙̲̺̻̆̂̄̽̄͂̃̽̚̚ⁿ̷̡̖͍͊̍͛̄͌ⁿ̵̢̧̠͔͔̫̻͚̄̆̈̓̽̒͂̉͝͝ᵒ̵̻̤̰̲̑͌̌̄̎ͅᶜ̸͎͛̔̏̀̎̚͝ᵉ̸̜̙̦̜̼̤̯̤̀̿̌̾̏͗͋ⁿ̷̧͈̭̥̪̊̇ͅᵗ̸̝̤̳̮̥̖̹̥͙̒͑̈̓̂͠ before heating the pan. Adds some ժ̶̻̫̤̫̿͋̇̈͠͠͠ҽ̵͙̮̌̿͑͗̀̀͘͘͠ʂ̸̧̘̩̟̲͊͒̿̚ք̷̫̘̗͇̪̤̓̈͠ͅͅą̴̳̮̗̜͈̭͖̔͆͑̀̓̂ì̶̢̠̳̤͚̭̙͋̄̃̀̆̚͝͠͝ɾ̶̼͔͚͙̬̤̹̱̅͋̾͝ͅ to an otherwise mundane sandwich.
Personally I find §̷̛̛͎̜̞͍͍̭͇̞̰̖̘̻̮͖̈́̈̇͊̀̀̄̽͛̉̈̈́̋͜͜w̴̢̼͖̟͕͖̰̞̙̺͔̦̠̟͆͆̋̅́͋̀̓̍̾̅͗̄̈͝͝ê̶̢̡̧̡̛̛̪̟̜̜͕̩̯͎̦̙͌̈́̓̋̏̈́̒͆̎͂̕͜͠ȩ̴̨̞͍̻̹̱̟̰͍̤̭͍̫̜͈̂͋̾̀̈̒͂͋̀̎̔͛̌̓̔͘͝†̶̩͍͓̖̭̫̺̭̘͚͈̼̲͔̟̪̓̈́̄͛̋̆̋̽̈͒̒̅͝͠ ̶͔͍͎̝͙̪͉͚̝̟̰̫̙͈̾̀̈͛͐͗͂̾̎̒̈́̈̇̒£̵̛̛͈̹͍̙̺͇̟̰̰͓̣̦͙̰͇͊̀͂͂̂̉̋̈͆̊́̓̈́͠ͅå̶̡̢̢̧̢͔̯̟̩̭̣̺̜̻̻͔̈́͆̒̋̎̋̍͗͒̾̓̾̚͘͝͠†̴̡̧̼̫͇̟̙̰̦̫̮͙̬̠̟̊̂́̋̀̄̿́̏̐̈́͗̇̍̈̂ ̴̻̪͙̬͍̖̝̮͇̗͓͈͙̜̯͒͋̉͐͊̌̃̒̀̊̌̈̈́̕̚͘͜ð̴̡̤͍͎̭̯̙̺̣̦̯̘̙́̌̿͛̈́̅̆̈̏̾̀̚̚̕͜͝£̶̧̛͉͖̼͍͕̜͙̫̭̝̻̠͙̈͌͌̅̇͐͑̑͗̇̽̐̔̎ ̸̡̪͉͇͚͍̰͖̲͈̜͙̰͈̝̈́̀́̈̿͐̈́͋͑͛͋̍́̐͌̚†̴̡̛̰̻̠͈̘̲̙̣̦̮͕̘̦͎̀̓̇̿̓̅̅͌̅̈́̆̄̽̊h̷̙͖͔̲̻̥̼͇̹̹̥͈͔̠̫͒̏̓̎͋̏̅͗͒̐̈́̾̊̎̍̕͜ê̷̢̛̛̪̟̮̻̖͙̤̮̦̺̳̻̠̏̊́̏̍͆̏̋͆̾͌̊͠ ̶̡͓̠̫̹̙͈͇̬̟̖͔̬̻̞̊̃̓́͑͊̌͆͌̈̑͛͘͜͝͝h̷̡̧̡̛͚͙͎̪͎͖̣̗̺͈̽̃͑̑̌̎̊̌̉̋̀̇̕̕̕͜ð̸̡̘̞̜̣̘̩̥͓̖̞̺͇͙̫̖̔̾̈̑͊̇͆̆͛͑̍̽͐̆͐̕g̵̨̼̟̳̙̜̹̦̳͙̼͕̗̝̬̯̾̊͛̾̋͗̑̽̃̀̔̌̌̓ to have a milder flavor.
Are you OK?
Funny you should ask that. You see, I'm having the worst time finding acceptably fresh ᵇ̵̸̴̸̷̸̵̶̸̶̶̵̷̶̨̧̡̧̡̨̧̛̛͈̩̣̣͚̫̹͍̘̼̗̲̤̜̰̩̺̰̠̗͚̺̬͔̹̘̞̼̞̳̹̻̰̼͇̼̥̩̼̣̝̪̳̯̲͖̜̘̩͔̠̰̣̪̲̻͓̲̩̤̯̤͔̦͎̋̅̃͆̎͊̈́̊̽̔̅̎͂̈̒͊̿̎̀͆́̈́̂̑̉̓͒́̽͊̃́͌̀̋͐̂̿͛̃̓͒͌̂̿͂͛̄̂̆̎͆̿̈́̋̀̈̆̏̅̐̃̆̕̕͘̚̚̚͠͝͝͝͝ͅͅˡ̴̶̵̸̴̵̷̸̸̴̸̷̴̶̵̶̷̵̧̧̡̨̛̠͈̬̮̰͖̙̬̻͓̘͈̪̠̩̺̝̬̤͓͖͍̗͎̞̖̦͔̞̭̺̣̰̙̝̯͖̭̥̥̹͕͈̤͚͕͔̤̭̭̼̙̙̣̦͈̳͈͓̼̱̬̮̘̰̭̝͕̺̣͈̊́̀͛̇̍̐̈͛̏̿͊̇̓̑̂̿̃̈̋̓̃̑̆͒̌̆͛̐͆̉̀͋̿͒͐̐͂͊̾̓͒̈͆̇͊̍̾̑̒̑̉͋̌͋̓̄̑̂̆͐̓̈́̂̇̉̎̍̈͛̆̓̀͂̽̕̚̚̕͘̚͘̚̚͝͝͠͝͝͝͝ͅͅͅᵒ̸̷̵̸̸̶̶̵̴̴̸̵̵̴̡̨̡̧̧̧̡̧̧̨̨̨̛̛͙͓̤̼͖͉͙̳̫̥̻͕̮̮̼͚̤̳͈̘̦̝̭̝͚͔͖̠̞̼͎̼̯̟͎̬̻͉̳̭̙͙̬̜̻̗̳̲̠̬̭͉̞̺̹̫͔̭͉̺̰͓̠̼̤͉̯̻̮̪͙̙̖̜̮̺̜͚̝͙̼́̽̿̀́̈͐̿̉͑̔̅͆̀̌̎̍̈́̓̾̊̄̋̀̀͐̒̈̔͂͋͗̊͂̈́͂̓̐͊̋͛̾̅̑̐̐̓̇̊̚̕̕̚̕͜͜͝͝͠͝͝͠ͅͅᵒ̷̨̫̤͆̾͐̒̕̕͠͝ᵈ̶̤̂̄̃͋̕͘ ̶̡̡͎̝͖̜̭̗͙͚͂̂͘̚ᵒ̷̘̻͕̹͗̃̉͛͐̚͜ᶠ̵̣̞̪̰͍͇͝ ̵̡͕̩͖͙̫̜̯̩͋͛̋͂̾ɘ̴̜͂̍̕ʜ̷̨̩͙̻̜̼̫̗̈́̃͌̀͋̋̒ƚ̵̡̩̯̜̫͙͖̩͕̾͂̋͛͋ ̵͇͍̰̪̞̣͝ ̷̡̡̥̩̠̟̫̍͒͗̇̑̓͗̊͠ⁱ̷̻̞̠͉̄̆̽͆̿̀̎̃̀͝ⁿ̷͉͉̀̇̄̽̔̾̃͘̕͝ⁿ̸͈͒͑̽̈́̀̏̒̆͝ᵒ̷̧̳̭̺̅̏̊͂͜ᶜ̷̷̸̷̸̶̨̧̨̧̦̟̖̙͔̠̹͚̺̗͓͔̦̳̰͍̹͇͖͉͈̬̭͙̞͉͚̗̬̠̍̔̓̐̀̾̿͑̆̓̓̿̉̈́̅͛͑̈̌̈́̆̆͌̋́̕͜͜͜͠ͅᵉ̸̷̷̶̸̸̴̵̶̶̸̷̶̵̴̡̢̡̢̛̛̛̭̫̳̠̫̯̫̙͈̣͙̟͓͓̮͇̭̰̫͔̫͈̩̮̬̺͔̞̘̬̪̲̜̖̥̳͙̘͎̤͔͎̣̙̭͍͔̟͇͈͉̲̻̯̻͎̫͎̜̲̘̙͈̗̟͓̱̯̘͓͇͉̖̙͗͆̌́̎̾̀͗̀́̿̂̉͊̀̓́̅̅͂̇̃͆̊͋̈͗̾̌̋̀̇̓̽̀̀̆̅̆́̆̽̌̐͒́͐̈́̽͑̅̏̆̈̂̓̐̋̽̂́̈̐̌̔͑̽͑̽̉̃̌̍̒̃́̒̔̄̆̽̌̌͘͘͜͜͜͝͠͝͝͝ͅⁿ̵̤̮̖̘̄̇͊ᵗ̷̩͙̘̳̲̰̤̳̀͛̓̍͋ so all of my meals are just okay, or rather; mundane. ᴵ̴̢̠̼̞̪̱̱̻͒̄͊̀̆̍́ᵗ̴̼̭͍̠̥̀'̷͖͉͋͒̈́̾̂̓̀͝͝ˢ̵̡͖̺̊̈͊̕͠ ̷̡͚̰̖͚͍̱̅͆̅͝ᵗ̵̭̝̿̆̊̑ͅᵉ̴̮̺͈͚̀̈́̏̏̕͠͠͝ʳ̴̥̟̱̻̈́̃̌͂̔̓͝ʳ̸̨̼̘̪̗͔̺͍̏ͅⁱ̴̹̥̂͐͋̀̂́̅ᵇ̵̻͚͖̙̞̠̩̠͙̒̐̍̉ˡ̴̨̢̳̻͔̥̖̻̆̒́͗̋ᵉ̸̤̥̩̦̃̃́̐͛̂̕͝.
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(Pure opinion) I feel like there's a difference in the level of saturation in the bread before the toasted patina forms. Spread before soaks deeper, in the pan seems to crust faster and thinner.
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Butter, unless we've got a duck hen laying at inopportune times. Then it's duck egg mayo.
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Grilled cheese sandwiches are a near-perfect conveyance mechanism for soups. For us, tomato soups get sharp cheddar, butternut and acorn squash soups tend to get a provolone, and I'm fond of smoked cheeses for pumpkin soup. Sourdoughs are great but we're also fans of cracked wheat breads.
I prefer mayo, spread on the bread. Any type of melty cheese will work, no hard like provolone or super crumbly liek feta. Any bread can also make a good grilled cheese. I have had amazing Swiss and rye grilled cheese. I also consider a cheese quesadilla a grilled cheese and I make those often as well!
Love duck eggs never had duck egg mayo.
The duck mayo was something we tried making because we both played stardew something fierce and had also never tried it. It's delicious. The provolone was a happy discovery born of "what can we make without going out" but the slight unctuousness is a nice contrast.
I hadn't considered your last point but completely agree
Spot on.
Sometimes to be fancy its mozzarella (fresh, not the shreddy pizza or slice sammich type) and mix olive oil, butter, pesto as a spread.
I stopped using pre shredded cheese so I'm with you there! Have also used olive oil. And for extra fancy I have done olive oil on bread, then crust the oil side in parm. It gets an interesting crunchy salty nutty crust. edit (I immediately regret my choice of phrase there, but I'm leaving it.)
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My goto for grilled cheese is butter, premelted and mixed with garlic powder, oregano and black pepper. Fresh garlic is even better when I'm not too lazy, but grilled cheese is comfort food so I usually just want to make it and eat it ASAP. My goto bread is sourdough and my goto cheese is fresh mozzarella. I make a really thick tomato soup to go with it, by making Campbell's condensed tomato soup with heavy cream instead of water and adding lots of herbs and spices. It might as well be a tomato cream sauce.
Because apparently I want grilled cheese to just be pizza.
Use the garlic butter dipping cups from Papa John's, I bet it would slap.
Grilled pizza sounds pretty good too
I actually made that once. A friend and I were watching Buffy the Vampire slayer and there's an episode where the secret ingredient to make the mini pizzas so good was to take them out of the oven and fry them in garlic butter, then put them back in the oven.
So we tried it... man... it was crack.
That, to me, would be a type of open face melt. Which are very good as well.
Heavy cream all the way for tomato soup. The mozzarella "snap" is always good and a goot texture feeling. That is a bit more of a grown up grilled cheese. Mine are generally basic and quick. Bread, mayo, cheese, heat, time. I will occasionally spice it up and make it fancy but usually, like you I want it now and good and easy.
Thank you OP, I'm saving this thread for future reference....
I'm glad this is of value to someone other than me. Moslty I really liek grilled cheese. Was slightly curious about the science of fat in pan vs fat spread on bread. To my brain, it's shouldn't make a difference where the fat starts, but it does.
Adding in, I think the egg in the mayo definitely enhances the flavor and texture, more that the pure fattyness or another source.
I guess we just call it cheese on toast here, & seems less complicated... I just put a slice of bread in the toaster, once its done, put some cheese ontop, a nice mature cheddar, pop it under the grill, until the cheese is bubbling, job done. Nice with bit of brown sauce ontop...
Butter that's foaming in the pan, then whatever basic sandwich bread, then Norwegian "yellow cheese", sort of like a mild Gouda. The cheese itself is good but not that exciting, so a pinch of salt and this or that spice (BBQ spice, garlic powder, chili flakes) is good, or some more flavorful cheese. I like keeping it simple so the butter flavor doesn't get lost, though. Maybe cheat with a tiny bit of extra butter to finish.
Fat poured into pan doesn't guarantee the kind of pristine coverage necessary for a good crusty grilled cheese simply because it doesn't get the opportunity to penetrate as far into the bread, only the outer most bit of bread catches a sear and then that sear prevents further fat penetration and also mayonnaise is best IMO because you get the best crisp to fat ratio, you can use much less mayonnaise than butter and still get wonderfully crispy results.
Sure it's crisper, but it don't taste like butter
this thread made me hungry.
Me too, me too. How do you prefer a grilled cheese?
very "airy" bread, lots of butter (on the bread), at least two kinds of cheese (provolone is a favorite), always cooked on our trusty cast iron skillet. i like to dip mine in ketchup like a heathen, but i'll do soup if i'm sick.
i also once had a mac and grilled cheese from a food truck. that was killer.